Our tips towards sensible storage ideas and creating a healthy atmosphere for working from home
The internet has changed the way human beings think and interact. Since its early inception and commercial introduction in the 1990s, it has become a phenomenon which allows people in the most remote locations to connect.
What is more, the internet has transformed the way we work. As messages, articles, films, money and much more can be sent at the click of a button, the speed of the web has drastically shifted our perceptions of the importance of offices.
In 2012, the recent trend for off-shore, out-sourcing and work-at-home freelance employment shows little sign of decreasing. And whilst the office may be a thing of the past for new freelancers, there is still the question of creating that work feel in your house – with home office furniture and neat storage ideas available from companies such as Ryman.
The key to establishing an area in your house which is conducive to productive work is to know your boundaries. Make sure this is a space clearly delineated for work – otherwise you’ll be using it to chill out, play pool, invite all the family – and it will quickly lose its psychological association with working.
Lighting is key, in combination with your key central workstation. Try to maximize natural light as much as possible – so place your desk or table near a window or beneath a skylight if you have one. Be precise with the kind of desk you require – again, this is not just about comfort, it’s about practicality and function.
Consider the height of your desk and chair, the necessity for drawers and of what size – and whether you expect to be producing a lot of clutter on the surface, in which case easy moveable storage trays and tins will be an excellent idea.
Storage is the other essential point to consider when creating your home office. What type of storage do you need? Do you keep paper copies of your work? Do you have a lot of books and box files? Or is it all online or on hard drives? Either way, archive meticulously and remember to leave enough space for all the new material you will be producing in your ultra-efficient work environment….
This week, Vince Cable is going to be announcing plans which are set to reduce the amount of remuneration that senior business executives get. This is expected to continue the political row over the enormous pay that some executives receive.
The announcement of these plans comes right after an announcement by Royal Bank Of Scotland that they are going to be paying their bankers bonuses totalling £2.5 billion. This roughly equates to bonus figures of £140,000 per banker. This figure includes salaries as well as benefits and the individual bonus figure is expected to be about £500 million.
Over 80 percent of RBS is owned by theUKtaxpayer after it was bailed out in 2008 for a figure of £45 billion. Investment bankers at the bank are paid less than their rivals but the large salaries are still an issue for ministers as well as the public. The Prime Minister as well as George Osborne have said that they want to see the financial services sector have some restraint when they are offering bonuses.
The Chief Executive of RBS’s Stephen Hester and he is expected to take a bonus of over £1 million. This year Mr Hester has managed asset disposals valued at nearly £5 billion and in the past has waived his large bonus.
Vince cable wants to introduce measures that will force companies to publish information about how much the Chief Executive is earning as a single figure, inclusive of bonuses and other additional pay.
This will make the figure easy to understand by people who do not know how to read financial reports. Plans also previously included the appointment of an employee of the company to sit on the company’s board however this initiative has been postponed despite an appeal from trade unions to have it implemented.
The accounting company, Ernst & Young, have recently completed analysis which shows that the number of profit warnings being issued by companies has risen by 70 percent. In the third quarter the number of profit warnings was around 50 but in the final quarter nearly 90 warnings were issued.
This shows the biggest increase in this type of warnings in 10 years. Throughout the entire year there were nearly 280 profit warnings, which is around 80 more than aware in the previous financial year.
The number of listed companies issuing warnings increased nearly 15 percent, some of the most notable warnings came from Premier Foods and Mothercare. Currently, more profit warnings are being issued and have been seen since the start of the financial crisis back in 2008. Retailers are the companies issuing the most warnings and many expect this is simply because customers have less money to spend.
The head of restructuring at Ernst & Young is Alan Hudson who is stated, “There are still companies performing well in the market despite consumers cutting back their spending. Despite people having less disposable income they are spending money on items that they particularly value. The problem for many retailers is that consumers are generally cutting back on their spending which is affecting them negatively.”
It is not just retail that is being hit hard and many other sectors are releasing profit warnings. Computer services and software companies issued over 30 warnings in the last year which is the highest number since 2008.
About a fifth of the sector issued profit warnings during 2011. Mr Hudson continued, “The number of profit warnings being issued is an indicator of a change in the economy and it shows just what a hard year 2011 was for all companies, especially those involved in retail.”
Signbox are the UK leaders in signs for the workplace, and they have just launched their brand new Doodleglass™, a brand new concept in dry wipe boards that have been sympathetically designed to blend perfectly into any contemporary office environment or modern meeting space.
This product has been produced using a specially toughened safety glass with radiused corners to give a clean and smooth effect. Aluminium project fixings that have been silver adonised are used to fix the board to the wall, complementing its smart appearance.
Available in a range of seven sizes (from 420mm to 970mm in width), Doodleglass™ is ideal for a variety of applications including meeting, training, function and smaller conference rooms or simply for use by individual staff to use for ‘to do’ lists or notes.
Doodleglass™ can be branded with company logos, supplied with pre-set grids or charts, and is available with either a clear, coloured or etched background to suit specific requirements.
Doodleglass™ is available now from Signbox’s online shop. For further information, or to view the full range of Signbox’s products, visit the website at www.signboxshop.co.uk.
The company Rockhopper Exploration is involved in the discovery of oil in the region of the Falkland Islands, which is obviously a politically sensitive task. The project is worth $2 billion and the company is currently seeking a partner to work with on the exploration. According to Morgan Stanley, the investment bank, there are currently around eight companies interested in bidding on the project.
Morgan Stanley recently stated, “If interest is high enough in this project then the company would be willing to give operational control to the new partner.” The company said that they are giving access to the company’s figures to potential bidders as they require additional expertise and money in order to develop the project further.
An oil analyst forMacquarie, an investment bank, is Mark Wilson who has stated, “We expect that Rockhopper Exploration is going to want to sell a half stake in the project in return for the partner bearing all the costs of development.”
The financial consequence of joining this venture means that only well funded companies are going to be able to afford to step in. The announcement that the company was seeking a partner caused shares to rise 10 percent which leaves them at their highest point in the last half year.
Plans for the development of theFalkland Islandsfor oil production were announced by the company last year and the company said they’ve already been approached by several people looking to join in with the project.
It was initially thought that there would be a joint venture between Rockhopper and Cairne, an Edinburgh-based exploration company, but this company recently returned a large amount of money to its shareholders. This has led analysts to believe that it is going to be using its remaining cash for investment in other areas.
Unilever workers in Norwich are expected to strike soon in protest of the changes to their pension scheme by the company. The union representing the Unilever workers is Unite, which has stated that strikes will be beginning on 18 January and will continue for 10 days. The strikes are expected to affect production of leading cleaning and food products by Unilever.
The company previously assured workers that their pension scheme would be retained but they have now gone back on their word and workers are set to protest in order for them to maintain their pensions. It is estimated that because of the changes to the pension scheme workers are going to lose between 20 and 40 percent of their savings for retirement.
Trade unions have been putting forward alternatives to Unilever in order to maintain the retirement scheme. These methods are shown to reduce the risk for Unilever and save the company money, but Unilever have stated that there is nothing the workers can do to persuade them to keep the current scheme running. Unite has recently stated that Unilever are now refusing to negotiate about the issue.
Jennie Formby, is the national officer for Unite and she has commented, “We want to reach a sensible solution with Unilever and we have asked them to come to the negotiating table. It is unfortunate that they have refused to do this and it shows that they are not interested in reaching a solution that is suitable for both the workers and the company.
This has left the workforce with no other choice but to withdraw themselves from work.
The first strike in the UK history of Unilever occurred last December and Unilever did not deal with the situation appropriately. Instead of coming to discuss the issue they spitefully cancelled the Christmas parties for its workforce.”
The London Chamber of Commerce and Industry have announced that they are to host the inaugural national mediation summit, which will have guest speakers from the UK government, BT and CIPD. This exclusive summit will be discussing the biggest shake up of dispute resolution for the past 20 years, and has been organised by the The TCM Group
There will be employment relations experts present to provide an overview of the new Government proposals for improving both mediation and resolution in the workplace. On the 19th of January, The TCM Group in partnership with the London Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a free ‘Breakfast Briefing Seminar’ on the Government’s response to the ‘Resolving workplace disputes’ consultation. The Government’s response to the recent dispute resolution consultation states that mediation should become a preferred mechanism for organizations to resolve disputes without the needs to go to court :
“Our vision is for an employment dispute resolution system that promotes the use of early dispute resolution as a means of dealing with workplace problems. The consultation Resolving Workplace Disputes set out our ideas, which focused on the need to tackle problems early, before they got to the tribunal stage.”
Confirmed speakers at the national mediation summit to be held on the 19th of January 2012 include:
• Gail Davies from the Department for Business Innovation and Skills
• Mike Emmott from CIPD
• Helen Goss and Michael Farrier from Boyes Turner
• Mediation expert David Liddle from The TCM Group
• Caroline Waters, Director of People and Policy at BT
National workplace mediation summit with boast expert speakers
The Government response to the consultation is part of the Employment Law Review instigated by the Coalition. On the 30th of November the Coalition Government announced one of the most radical shake-ups of employment law in twenty years.
The Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development (CIPD) have identified significant advantages to UK companies who use mediation. Reduced stress and increased performance were two areas identified in a recent CIPD report into mediation and dispute resolution.
David Liddle, Founder of The TCM Group and President of the Professional Mediators Association believes that this event reflects a major milestone in the development of effective dispute resolution for UK organisations. He stated today that:
“It is clear from the proposals that the Government supports mediation and will encourage companies to deploy mediation in order to resolve disputes without the need for legal remedies. I welcome this exciting development and I look forward to working with officials from the Government alongside other key partners to help foster a culture of early resolution and mediation as an alternative to costly and stressful employment tribunals.“
Event details:
• Venue: London Chamber of Commerce & Industry
• Date: Thursday, 19th of January 2012
• Time: 08:30am (Registration ) – 11:30 am (End)
• Cost: Free: Coffee – Tea & Breakfast included
• How to book: To reserve a place please click here
The battle between TV on demand and online films just got a whole lot more interesting, Netflix, the leading US player that boasts a membership of 24m has just launched its new streaming service to the UK and Ireland for £5.99 a month.
Subscribers will get access to a huge raft of content, thanks to the deal it has struck with Miramax, Momentum and MGM, as well as with TV providers in Britain such as Channel 4, ITV and the BBC. Effectively, the viewers will be able to watch practically anything from the Inbetweeners to Pirate of the Caribbean.
Netflix are banking on replicating their US success, where it has a listing on the Nasdaq and has a stock market value of almost $5bn, or £3.24bn. The UK market is unlike the US however, it is highly competitive and doesn’t enjoy first mover advantage. As a result, Netflix are offering a free month subscription to all users in the UK in an attempt to woo them into subscribing.
The CE of Netflix, Reed Hastings, flew to London for the launch, and claimed that he didn’t see LoveFilm, the established UK online player, as a serious rival. However, just like the sharp elbowed veteran of Silicon Valley that he is, Mr Hastings then went on to spend most of the time during his interview with the Independent criticising LoveFilm.
He said that many were saying that this was a LoveFilm Vs Netflix battle, but in reality LoveFilm were just a DVD by post service who then started streaming. The real battle was the one where Netflix and LoveFilm are competing against Sky Atlantic and Sky Movies. He does make a fair point when he says that Sky is the bigger competitor, but dismissing LoveFilm as just a DVD by post company is rather cheeky.
A business in Kuwait has bought a lingerie store in Milton Keynes, safeguarding the jobs of 20 employees. The La Senza store in Silbury Arcade is one of the 60 strong chain that has been saved from the sale by their administrators, KPMG, to Alyshaya UK Ltd., which is part off the Alshaya group.
Joint administrators David Standish, Rob Croxen and Richard Fleming are the KPMG’s restructuring partners who completed the agreement to sell part of the business to the Kuwait based international retail franchise operator. Alshaya now own 60 La Senza stores in the UK and have secured around 1100 jobs in the process.
La Senza UK confirmed on December 30 that they were commencing a programme that would see 81 store closures, including their outlets in Aylesbury, Hemel Hempstead and Luton. These stores were not included in the Alshaya sale and have now ceased trading. The administrators have since announced that a further 3 stores will close, along with 18 concessions.
The closure of 84 stores and the 18 concessions has unfortunately led to around 1300 job losses, and around 15 staff members have been kept on my KPMG to assist the administrators.
Richard Fleming has said that Alshaya is one of the leading international retail operators that already has long standing links with the UK and is an international franchise partner in a string of high brand weeks. He added that the deal recognised the value of La Senza as a popular and strong brand on the high street that has a loyal customer base.
Mohammed Alshaya is the executive chairman of the Alshaya group in Kuwait, and he has said that they are delighted to have reached an agreement to buy the :La Senza stores, in turn saving jobs and protecting a brand that is favoured on the high street. He also said that this was an exciting opportunity for them to strengthen their presence in the UK and that is was a strategic investment that added to their extensive international portfolio.
Anyone who trades on the forex market will tell you that keeping up to date on the latest news is vital in attaining success. The problem is, how do you know what news is important when it comes to forex trading? This market is affected by a range of different types of news and therefore having a broad knowledge is often the best course of action.
Global news
The first type of news that often comes to mind when thinking about forex trading is that of global news. Anything to do with the state of a country’s economy or changes to its government or politics are likely to affect its forex market. This is because these changes will have an impact on their economy and therefore on the value of their currency.
Other world events, such as natural disasters, will have a similar affect and therefore it is important that traders keep up to date on the latest news updates from various countries – especially those which they intend to trade between.
Economic news
Following on from the above, any news which specifically relates to the economy of a country is vital for forex traders. This means that any updates on the state of the stock market, the rise and fall of shares and other news relating to national economies will be of importance.
Knowledge of these events will require traders to monitor the activities and events of countries which they intend to trade within whilst also keeping an eye on the global economic situation. This is because some events can affect certain nations even if they are not directly involved.
For example, the recent debt crisis faced by Greece had a negative impact on the Euro Zone which meant a number of other nations were affected as a result. Identifying the potential for this outcome by monitoring the situation carefully would have allowed forex traders to make wise decisions concerning their investments, helping them to attain successful trading results.
Trading news
Lastly, any general news over trading and the actions of other traders will be useful for both new and experienced forex traders. Nowadays, the trading world has entered the digital age and gives individuals the chance to become copy traders or social traders.
Copy or social trading is a process through which individuals are able to monitor the actions of traders and then choose to “copy” them. This allows them to make quick and informed decisions based on the trading news which they have to hand, being able to clearly identify trends by looking at what other traders are doing.
Of course, successful trading will rely on a thorough knowledge of all of the above and this is something forex traders do not always have the time to accrue. It is therefore recommendable that traders use an official broker or trading service to help them gain access to this news with as little disruption as possible.
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